Sindhi Food Types
Sindhi Food Types and Sindhi Kitchen
Introductory
When it comes to being fond of eating, Sindhis are the undisputed kings. The worldwide Sindhi community is well-known for their eating habits, and Sindhi food is famous for its delicious aroma and unmatched taste. The unique taste and aroma of Sindhi food show that Sindhi people’s appetites are not satisfied with just tasty food; they also crave a specific aroma. Sindhi food is often considered rich in oil and spices.
Rice and potatoes are considered staple Sindhi foods, even though almost equivalent quantity of potatoes and onions are consumed in most of Sindhi kitchens. There are many Sindhi families who uses pulses also in large quantity, rice being cooked almost daily with dal (pulse) in those Sindhi households.
If we consider the universal trend of food types, it is usually based on the time of eating, such as breakfast, lunch, and dinner. In many places, snacks are considered the fourth type of food. However, Sindhi community stands alone and differs from other communities around the world when it comes to types of food. This is due to their love for eating and the tradition of highly delicious food with specific aromas in each dish.
Base for Types of Sindhi Food
The classification of Sindhi food is not merely based on timing i.e., breakfast, lunch and dinner. Before we go for yet another base of Sindhi food classification or types of Sindhi food specially vegetables, this is right time to recall Papad, a signatory snack of Sindhi community, an identity of Sindhi community and most importantly a dish which any one is offered while being welcomed at any Sindhi home. This is also notable point that in Sindhi families Papad is eaten either as roasted form or fried at any time of the day as snack. In the modern food habits, a cheerful importance is given to starters but Sindhi community since the centuries is using Papad as their favourite starter.
There is another notable point related with Sindhi food. Today social environment appeared to be filled with talks about the preservation of food, avoiding wastage of food, Pre-cooked or semi cooked food. One might be surprised to learn that in Sindhi Kitchen these are tackled successfully since the centuries. Sindhi Pickles are the best illustration of preservation of food. On Sindhi festivals Thadadi Sindhi families are eating pre-cooked food because kitchen is kept closed on this day. Sindhi families prepare Kokiyun from pluses and wheat flour namely Mithiyun and Chahiriyun Kokiyun is another example of pre-cooked food. If you are on railway travel no wonder you can observe a Sindhi family eating these Kokiyun either as breakfast or lunch with pickles.
Sindhi Fried Rice and Seyal Mani often used as breakfast are the way Sindhi community practising since centuries for avoiding food wastage. Fried rice is cooked from the left-over rice and very small quantity of various vegetables left unused. Many times, fried rice is cooked even without vegetables only with use of turmeric and red chilli powder. Fried rice is such highly tasty food stuff that in many families once a while large quantity of rice is cooked for dinner to have fried rice as breakfast on next morning. Seyal Mani is prepared from left over Chapattis. Left over chapattis are tore into small pieces and bowled with small pieces of tomato and garlic.
Sindhi community also have tradition of cooking special food for special occasion or festival. There was time when during the Sindhi marriage Pulav with Gram pulses vegetable or Spinach vegetable were considered as essential. Even today on the occasion of Sathu, a Sindhi marriage ritual, Tanhiri (Sweet rice with black resin and dry coconut pieces) is cooked without fail. There is tradition of distributing Tanhiri and Ranh, Koohar, Chhola (legume based boiled vegetable) at Sindhi deity Jhulelal temple and during the Bahirano Procession.
Another base for Classification or types of Sindhi Vegetables
Now we will turn to other Sindhi base for type of food. Like the time of eating in Sindhi community food is also classified on the bases of process of cooking food. If I ask you about the prime activity of Sindhi kitchen, I am sure certainly probable and universally answer will be frying. In Sindhi Kitchen along with frying one will find three other major activities related specially with vegetables cooking. On the bases of cooking process Sindhi vegetables are divided into four types namely 01. Fried Vegetables 02. Seyal Bhajiyun 03. Dag Variyun Bhajiyun (both are Onion based Vegetables) 04. Vegetables with Curry
Fried Vegetables
In Sindhi families fried vegetables are usually, used as subsidiary vegetables though a few are also used as main course vegetable. Often fired vegetables are used at breakfast, fried Potato is most common example of it. In many Sindhi families Chapattis and fried Potatoes and Sayun (Vermicelli) and fried Potatoes are most liked breakfast. Pakoda yet another signatory Sindhi recipe is also a fried vegetable. Probably this is almost impossible to find any other recipe in the world with such large number of variations that Sindhi Pakora have.
Seyal Sindhi Vegetables
Frying. Roasting, Steaming, simmering, poaching, baking, grilling and bowling process used in a kitchen for cooking food. Seyal Baji and Dag Variyun Sindhi vegetables are coked by using two different processes. When during cooking roasting is involved for shorter duration and steaming for longer duration in Sindhi language this process is called Sijayinu thus Sindhi vegetables cooked in this way are called Seyal Bhajiyun. Most common are ladyfinger and Onion, Bitter gourd and Onion, Gram flour and Onion (Besanu Basar) etc. Important thing is that in all these vegetable Onion is essential ingredient. All these vegetables are named on the bases of other vegetable used as second main ingredient.
Dag Variyun Sindhi Vegetables
In these Sindhi vegetables cooking process starts with frying and fallowed by simmering. The process of frying is called Dog Pachayinu hence these types of Sindhi vegetables are called Dag Variyun Sindhi Vegetables. Taste of these depends on one’s mastery of preparing fried onion or Dag Pachayinu. Sindhi Mushroom is most common example of these types of Sindhi vegetables. You might be wondering why Sindhi Pulav is so much tasty in comparison of Pulav cooked by other communities? the secret is laying with process of Dagu Pachayinu, with which cooking of Sindhi Pulav starts.
One thing which must be kept in mind that in comparison of boiling nutrient loss is much lower in process of steaming and simmering hence Sindhi Seyal and Dag Variyun vegetables are considered having higher nutrient value. Beside the nutrient value, bright colour, fine texture and above all very good taste are the signatory qualities of these Sindhi vegetable.
Sindhi Vegetables with Curry
Often these vegetables are used as substitute for pulses which Sindhi people are habituated to have with rice almost daily. This might sound interesting to learn for many that for serving with chapattis almost entire quantity of water is boiled so we get a vegetable with thicker gravy. Sindhi Kadi is most popular form of Sindhi vegetables with curry whereas Potatoes and tomato curry is most commonly used vegetable in Sindhi homes.